Weather Forecast

Trench collapses on man on farm in western Minnesota

ROTHSAY, Minn. -- A man had to be rescued from the bottom of a trench the morning of Wednesday, Aug. 29, in rural Rothsay, Minnesota, when it collapsed on him.

Wilkin County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call at 11 a.m. of a man trapped at a rural farmstead outside of Rothsay. The victim was laying water lines on his farm and working in the bottom of a trench when the ground gave way, a release from the sheriff’s office states.

The man, identified as David Simmer, 36, was dug out of the trench by other workers on the farm and was alert and conscious.

Rothsay Rescue requested life flight and the victim was transported by Ambulance Service, Inc., to a nearby harvested wheat field to await the air med unit, which took him to the hospital. His condition is unknown.

Responding to the scene were Rothsay Rescue, Wilkin County Sheriff’s Office, Ambulance Service Inc. and Sanford Air Med.